April 18th, the last day of the league's regular season, each team ushered in the final battle of the NBA playoffs.

The game between the Warriors and the Lakers kicked off first.

Because it was related to the final playoff rankings, this game also attracted much attention.

Before the game, news came out that Curry would not play in this game, which made Lakers fans full of expectations.

Although the Lakers' performance this season was not as expected, as Lakers fans, they didn't want to see Kobe miss the playoffs.

At 7 p.m. that night, the game officially began.

Curry didn't play as the fans expected, but everyone else besides Curry, Thompson, Green, and Bogut, the core players, all started.

The Warriors didn't give up on this game as the outside world said, they still wanted to continue to expand their regular season win record.

On another court, the Thunder were also preparing for their last game.

After seeing the Warriors' starting lineup, there was a burst of excited cheers in the Thunder's locker room.

Collison gave Durant a thumbs up, the Warriors wanted to win, and their hopes of advancing to the playoffs greatly increased.

Obviously, he thought this was Durant's lobbying effort.

The Warriors wanted to win, and the Lakers wanted to win even more. The two teams played extremely anxiously. At the end of the first half, the score was tied at 52.

Just as they entered halftime, the game between the Thunder and the Pelicans also started at the New Orleans Arena.

The Pelicans were competing for second place in the West. Except for Jokic, who couldn't play due to injury, they played with their full lineup.

The Thunder on the other side were the same. Durant came to the sidelines in a suit to cheer for the team.

Before the game, Westbrook shouted at his teammates to boost morale.

The Thunder came out with a bang, Westbrook repeatedly attacked the Pelicans' basket, and even staged a wonderful moment of dunking over Ariza.

After the first quarter, the score between the two teams remained deadlocked.

However, in the second quarter, the situation on the court suddenly changed drastically. Led by Gordon, the Pelicans' bench quickly widened the score.

After the Thunder traded Reggie Jackson, their bench firepower weakened a lot, and they were obviously unable to resist.

Although Westbrook came back and helped the Thunder to keep the score close, at the end of the first half, the Thunder were still behind the Pelicans by 12 points, 48 to 60.

Moreover, after the first half, unfavorable news for the Thunder also came from the other side.

After the game between the Lakers and the Warriors, the Lakers finally defeated the Warriors 106 to 103, taking the victory in the final battle.

Kobe exploded for 30 points in the second half, becoming the key to the game's victory.

The Lakers won, which really pushed the Thunder to the brink of desperation.

In the Thunder's locker room at halftime, the atmosphere became unusually沉闷.

Collison tried to say some words to boost the team's morale, but the players' emotions did not improve significantly.

Returning in the second half, the Pelicans launched a 10-0 attack against the Thunder at the start, and the game suddenly lost its suspense.

When Westbrook was substituted off the court to rest in the third quarter, the point difference on the court was already close to 30 points.

Westbrook sat on the bench with a towel wrapped around his head, and next to him, Durant was also staring blankly at the score.

They, who were ranked second in the West last season, didn't even make the playoffs this season.

In the fourth quarter, the bench team had already started to play.

The Thunder's starters were still on the court, but the point difference was too big, and they couldn't catch up with the score.

In the end, the Pelicans easily defeated the Thunder 112 to 96 at home, taking the final battle.

This game brought their wins to 60, surpassing the Spurs to rank second in the West.

This number of wins also became the Pelicans' (including the former Hornets) best record in history.

At the end of the game, there was a long-lasting cheer from the audience.

Although the playoffs haven't started yet, this regular season record is enough for them to feel proud and honored.

The Pelicans are now a serious powerhouse.

After the game, the two teams had their final handshake.

Tang Tian chatted with Westbrook for a long time.

Tang Tian was more comforting the latter, the Thunder were missing Durant, and after trading Reggie Jackson, it was already very good to be able to play like this.

After the handshake, the two teams left the arena one after another.

Tang Tian watched Durant enter the player tunnel as well.

This was the first time Durant had missed the playoffs since Tang Tian entered the NBA, and he was now just watching Durant leave.

Back in the locker room, the players were celebrating wildly inside.

This wasn't their first year entering the playoffs, but it was clear that their strength and momentum this year were completely different from last year.

Jokic was also there. Although he couldn't play yet, he had recovered almost completely. Theoretically, he could return at the end of the first round.

This was a double blessing for the Pelicans.

After the game between the Thunder and the Pelicans, the final battles of other teams also ended one after another.

The 2014~2015 season regular season officially came to an end.

The rankings of the top eight in the East and West were also finalized.

In the East, the Hawks' record was the same as the Pelicans', both 60 wins and 22 losses, ranking first in the East.

The Cavaliers ranked second, with a record of 55 wins and 27 losses.

Although they failed to reach first place, the Big Three had completed their integration, and they were still the most competitive team in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

The Knicks' record was fixed at 53 wins and 29 losses, ranking third.

The combination of Anthony and Howard will face a real test in the playoffs.

The Bulls ranked fourth in the East with a record of 50 wins and 32 losses.

Although they didn't get Pau Gasol as in history, Jimmy Butler's outstanding performance, coupled with the progress of Taj Gibson, made them a dark horse team in the playoffs.

The Raptors took fifth place with 49 wins.

The Wizards ranked sixth with 46 wins.

The Bucks took seventh place with 41 wins.

This was Antetokounmpo's first time entering the playoffs. If they hadn't traded Knight and destroyed their own foundation, their record and ranking should have been better than now.

The Celtics took eighth place with a record of 40 wins and 42 losses. This was Stevens' first playoff trip.

The Eastern Conference playoff matchups also came out.

Hawks vs. Celtics

For the Celtics, this was their best situation. The Hawks were known as a civilian team and were not favored in the playoffs. They had a good chance of achieving a "black eight" upset (referring to an eighth-seeded team defeating a first-seeded team in the first round of the playoffs).

Cavaliers vs. Bucks

Antetokounmpo's playoff debut met James. The Bucks' management's suffocating operation at the trade deadline gave them the worst possible draw in the end.

Knicks vs. Wizards

This may be the most suspenseful matchup. Whether Anthony and Howard can both prove themselves in the playoffs, and whether old Pierce can lead the playoff-fatigued "double guns" (referring to the team's two star players) in the playoffs, everything is unknown.

Bulls vs. Raptors

The battle for the King of the North in history did not take place. The Canadians, who have always been weak in the playoffs, will face the Bulls, the most difficult opponent in the playoffs, and they don't even have home-court advantage. This is another difficult playoff trip for them.

But for them, who are strong in the regular season and weak in the playoffs, it doesn't seem to matter who their opponent is.